Capping- machine



July 28, 1931. F. L. B ORCHERT 1,316,001

' CAPPING MACHINE File 22. 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet l July 28, 1931'.

F. L. BORCHERT Filed Oct. 22, 1926 CAPPING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 y 1931. F. L. BOR-CHERT 1,316,001

CAPPING MACHINE Filed Oct. 22, 1926 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 FFIQE CAPPING MACHINE Application filed October 22, 1926.

This invention relates to capping devices generally but has more particular reference to the provision of a simple and practical type of hand operated capping machine for capping paper cups such as are used in the production of packaged ice cream sundaes.

One of the principal objects of the present invention is to provide an improved capping mechanism arranged to convey the caps to the mouths of the cups to be capped so as to insure the proper entry of the caps therein and also arranged to center and true-up the cups about the rim portion thereof to insure proper application of the caps.

Another object consists in the provision of a capping machine comprising a simple organization of parts especially adapted for hand operation but not necessarily so limited; the said machine including a carrier to be advanced step by step to feed the cups to the capping mechanism, which is operated in a predetermined sequence with respect to the advancement of the carrier, and the carrier having an inclined track upon which the cups are arranged to ride and be thereby raised out of the carrier for discharge from the machine, there being a suitable discharge chute having its receiving end over the carrier at the end of' the inclined track so that the cups immediately upon leaving the carrier enter the chute and are conducted from the machine. In the above recited organization the carrier advancing means and the capping mechanism are both operated from a single shaft arranged to be turned by a hand crank. A cap feeding slide is also arranged to be operated from the same shaft and to release a latch which locks the carrier at each step by step advance thereof, the releasing of the latch by the slide permitting the carrier advancing means to advance the carrier another step so as to bring the next cup beneath the capping mechanism.

The invention is fully described in the following specification in which reference is made to the accompanyings drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a front view of a hand oper- Serial No. 143,341.

ated capping machine embodying the features of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan View of Fig 1;

Fig. 3 is a rear View of Fig. 1;

F igs. 4 and 5 are vertical cross sections on the lines 4-4 and 55 respectively of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section in the plane of the line 66 in Fig. 5 but showing the cap feeding slide in its advanced position instead of the retracted position shown in Fig. 5; and

Figs. 7 and 8 are enlarged vertical sec tions at right angles to one another of the capping mechanism, Fig. 7 illustrating the operation of the mechanism by showing the same in the act of applying a cap to a cup, and Fig. 8 illustrating how the caps are fed to the capping mechanism by the cap feeding slide.

Throughout the views the same reference numerals are applied to corresponding parts.

The present machine is intended for use in small ice cream plants where the production of packaged sundaes is not sufficiently large to warrant having a complete filling and capping machine such as that shown in my copending application, Serial N 0. 72,618. A machine of the type shown in said application is capable of filling and capping as many as forty-five cups per minute, or even more, and is, therefore, intended pri marily for use where quantity production is required. In using the present machine, the cups will be filled by hand or otherwise and fed by hand one by one into the car rier of the capping machine to have paper caps applied thereto. The finished product will thus correspond to that of the larger automatic machine. Before proceeding with a detailed description of the present machine, it may be well to call attention to the fact that, while reference has been made to its use in the production of packaged sundaes, the present machine is not at all limited to this particular use as it is obviously immaterial what the cups are filled with. Similarly as in the case of the automatic machine, the present machine is adapted for capping cups filled with any fluid or plastic materials other than ice cream or sherbert such, for example, as fruits, vegetables, cheese, butters, syrups, and the like.

Referring for the present more particularly to Figs. 1 to 6, the machine comprises a frame or base 10 having legs 11 for standing the machine on a table or other suitable support. The base 10 provides a central boss 12 having a circular passageway 13 extending thereabout through which the cups, such as that shown at 14 in Fig. 7, are arranged to move as they are advanced by the rotary carrier or conveyor 15. The carrier 15 is exposed sufliciently to provide a loading station where the operator who turns the crank 16 with his right hand may with his left hand drop filled cups into the openings 17 provided in the carrier 15. The carrier is advanced step by step in a counter clockwise direction to advance the filled cups from the loading station one by one beneath the capping mechanism at 18. After leaving the capping mechanism the capped cups, in the further advancement of the carrier, ride up on an inclined track 19 provided in the passageway 13. The track 19 extends spirally, as appears most clearly in Fig. 3 and terminates just beneath the carrier 15 at the receiving end 20 of a discharge chute 21 mounted on a bracket 22 projecting from the side of the base 10. The receiving end 20 of the chute 21 is disposed directly over the carrier and is arranged to receive the cups as they are raised out of the carrier in riding up the track 19. An extension of one of the side Walls of the chute 21 provides a guide, as at 23, to insure the entry of the cups in the chute. The chute is arranged to discharge the cups from the machine upon the table or, if desired, a suitable receptacle may be provided to receive the same. In the case of packaged sundaes the filled and capped cups are placed in cans to go into a hardening room. The capping operation goes on at a fairly rapid rate, as many as thirty-five cups per minute being handled as compared with forty-five cups or more in the fully automatic machine; which, of course, is a favor able comparison as I am aware that in the past the capping of ten or fifteen or, at the most, twenty cups per minute by other types of hand; operated capping machines was considered to be the best obtainable production for a hand operated machine. The reason the present machine is capable of such production is that the cups are handled only once, that is, when they are placed in the machine. The caps, as will presently appear, do not require the handling customary in the case of many other hand operated capping machines of which I am aware. The production that can be secured depends practically only on the facility with which the operator can place the cups into the openings of the carrier. No limitation on production is imposed by the way in which the machine itself operates. In this connection, attention is called to the fact that the turning of the crank is not at all tedious and will give no discomfort, as was the case where a cap applying ram had to be struck with the fist in the capping of each cup. The present machine, as might be supposed, is portable and arranged to be placed wherever desired. The rail shown at 15 secured to the base 10 provides a convenient part to be grasped in picking up the machine. This rail also serves as a guard for the carrier 15. By providing the rail it is insured that the machine will not be picked up and supported by the carrier or some other part which might suffer from such handling.

The carrier 15 turns with respect to a post 24 extending centrally from the boss 12. The carrier 15 is suitably in the form of a disk of sheet metal in which the openings 17 may be punched. A hub 25 is fixed to the carrier 15, as by means of screws 26, and is provided with ratchet teeth 27 at the upper end thereof. A single tooth 28 is provided on the end of the main drive shaft 29 to engage the ratchet 27 once for each turn of the shaft 29 and cause the advancement of the carrier step by step. As appears in Fig. 2, the number of teeth in the ratchet 27 corresponds to the number of openings 17 so that as the carrier is advanced one cup after another is fed beneath the capping mechanism. The shaft 29 is received at one end in a bearing 30 provided in a bracket 31 mounted on the base 10 and has the crank 16 fixed thereto at the same end. The other end of the shaft is received in a bearing 32 fixed, as by means of a pin 33, to the upper end of the post 24. Another pin 34, passed through the lower end of the post 24, serves to retain the post in assembled position in the base 10. A cam 35 fixed on the shaft 29 is arranged directly over the projecting end of the plunger 36 of the capping mechanism 18 and, as will appear by observation of Figs. 1 and 4, is so disposed with respect to the tooth 28 as to come into engagement with the plunger 36 after the tooth 28 has engaged the ratchet 27 and advanced the carrier 15. In other words, the capping operation is performed when the carrier is at rest between its step by step advances.

The capping mechanism 18 is supported by a bracket 37 fixed, as by means of bolts 38, to the base 10. Caps are arranged in a stack received in an upright container 39 mounted on the bracket 37. The container, it will be noted, is open on one side, as at 40, to permit the projection from the container of tabs provided on the caps and by means of which the caps are intended to be removed from the cups by the consumer. The opening 40 serves also to make the stack of caps visible to the end and the operator is accordingly aware when the supply is nearly exhausted. A slide 41 operates beneath the container 39 and has a depression 42 at its forward end to receive the lowermost cap of the stack to remove the same upon movement of the slide to be fed to the capping mechanism 18. The slide 41 is fixed to a rod 43 reciprocable in a guideway 44 provided in the base 10. The rod 43 has a pin 45 projecting therefrom (see Fig.6) which is arranged to be received in the forked end of an oscillating crank 46. The latter is pivoted at 47 to the bracket 31 beneath the shaft 29 and carries two rollers 48 and 49. The rollers are arranged to be engaged by a cam 50 fixed to the shaft 29. The cam 50 is arranged to oscillate the crank 46 back and forth once for each turn of the shaft 29 by the crank 16. The cam 50 is so related to the tooth 28 that the slide 41 is advanced substantially all the way before the advancement of the carrier 15 is commenced, the latter being advanced during the return of the slide. This is because the car rier is not free to move until unlocked by the slide, as will soon appear. The relationship between the cam 50 and the cam 35 is such that the slide 41 is moved back and forth to convey a cap to the capping mechanism just before the capping plunger 36 is operated. It will be noted that the slide 41 carries a pin 51. This pin is arranged to engage a latch 52 to release the same from locking engagement with the carrier 15. The latch 52 is pivoted at 53 and has a tooth 54 arranged to drop into notches 55 provided on the periphery of the carrier 15. The carrier has the periphery thereof deflected i11- wardly in advance of the notches 55, by cutting away the material as indicated at 56, so that the tooth 54 of the latch 52 is insured easy entrance into the notches at the end of each step by step movement of the carrier. The latch 52 is normally urged to locking position by a spring 57 afiixed at one end to the base 10 and at the other end to the latch 52. When the cap feeding slide 41 is in its advanced position, as shown in Fig. 6, the pin 51 engages and releases the latch substantially as shown. Before the return of the slide 41 the tooth 28 com mences the feeding movement of the carrier 15 and consequently the tooth 54, upon the return of the slide 41 to its normal retracted position, will be left in engagement with the periphery of the carrier. At the end of the feeding movement of the carrier, the tooth 54 will ride into the notch 55 next to the one it has left. The carrier is thus held securely against possible movement from its accurately indexed position during the capping operation.

As above stated, it is one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide an improved capping mechanism which not only insures the proper entry of the cap into the mouth of the cup but also insures the centering and trueing up of the cup with respect to the cap when the cap is to be applied. While the capping mechanism is herein illustrated in connection with a man.- ually operated device, it will be understood that the same is not limited to use in this connection but, in fact, is particularly well adapted to the requirements of automatic machines where quantity production requires positiveness in operation as well as the capacity for speedy operation. For example, the present capping mechanism is well adapted for use in connection with a filling and capping machine such as that shown in my copending application above referred to. It will be observed that my improved capping mechanism comprises in addition to the plunger 36 a cap holder 58. The cap holder comprises a substantially circular frame open on one side, as shown at 59, to permit the entering of the cap 60 therein in the manner shown in Fig. 8. The holder frame provides an annular wall 61 in extent more than a half circle, as appears most clearly in Fig. 6. Thus when the cap feeding slide enters the cap in the holder, the cap is thereby bowed slightly and, due to the fact that it thereafter tends to straighten again, the cap is held frictionally, especially at diametrically opposed points, against dropping out of the holder. The cap is, however, arranged to be expelled by the pad portion 62 of the plunger 36. The friction fit of the cap in the holder serves partly to prevent the withdrawing of the cap with the slide. However, I prefer to provide a yielding tooth 63 the lower face of which is beveled, as shown at 64, to permit riding upon and over the cap as the cap is entered in the holder by the slide 41. Immediately upon the entering of the cap to the full extent shown in Fig. 8 the tooth 63 drops into place behind the cap and retains the same against withdrawal upon the withdrawal of the slide. A depression 65 is provided in the slide 41 to receive the tooth 63. The tooth 63 operates through an opening 66 in the bracket 37 and is carried by a plate 67. The latter is held yieldingly into engagement with the bracket 37 by a compression spring 68 the purpose of which, as will presently appear, is also to retract the plunger 36 with the cap holder after the capping operation. The plunger 36, it will be noted, is provided in two parts joined by a threaded connection at 69 and operates in a guide opening 70 provided in a bracket 71 fixed to the top of the bracket 37. At the threaded connection 69 a cross-head 72 is mounted on the plunger 36 and it is beneath this cross-head that the upper end of the spring 68, previously referred to, engages. The cap holder 58 has the plunger 86 centered therein by passing through a guide opening 73 provided in a cross-member 7% on the cap holder frame. A. pair of plunger rods 75, fixed to the cap holder frame, operate through openings in the bracket 37 and also through openings in the cross-head 72. The ends of the rods 75 passing through the cross-head '72 are reduced so that a seat is provided on the rods for compression springs 76 to act between the rods 7 5 and the cross-head 72. In operation it will be clear that the pad portion 62 of the plunger 36 will normally occupy a retracted position in the holder 58 in engagement with the cross member 74, as shown in F 8. The spring 68, as well as the springs 76, normally hold the parts in this relationship. When the plunger 36 is engaged by its operating cam 35 the holder 58 moves with the plunger toward the carrier 15. Thus the cap 60 is conveyed to the mouth of the cup to be capped. There is, therefore, no possibility for the cap to drop out of register with the cup. The cap, as a matter of fact, is not expelled from the holder until the holder 58 comes into engagement with the carrier, substantially as shown in Fig. 7. Thereupon the plunger 36 moves with respect to the cap holder 58 to expel the cap from the holder into the cup and press the same into place within the bead 77 provided on the cup near the rolled rim portion 78 thereof. In the movement of the plunger relative to the cap holder the springs 76 are placed under compression. The spring 68 has from the start been placed under compression and, immediately upon the release of the plunger 36, the plunger is retracted to its normal. inoperative position and both the plunger and the cap holder are retracted from the carrier. The cap holder provides an annular beveled seat 79 which engages about the rim portion 78 of the cup and serves to center the cup as well as to true-up the same so that the cap will be properly entered therein. There is positively no chance for the cap to be cooked up to one side with respect to the cup. Accordingly, none of the cups have to be rejected after the capping operation and possibly recapped.

It is believed that the foregoing conveys a clear understanding of the objects of my invention and, while I have illustrated but a single working embodiment, it should be un derstood that various changes might be made in details of construction or arrangement without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a machine of the character described,

the combination with a carrier for supporting containers, such as cups or the like, a cap container, a cap applying plunger, and a reciprocating slide for feeding caps one by one from said container to said plunger, of means for advancing said carrier step by step between the capping operations, a spring pressed latch for locking said carrier in position at each step by step advance thereof, and means operating with the cap feeding slide for releasing said latch, the carrier advancing means being operated in a predetermined timed relation with respect to the cap feeding slide whereby to advancethe carrier upon the release of said latch.

2. A. device of the character described comprising in combination with a support for a cup or other container to be capped, of a plate fixed over said support and constituting a frame member, a plunger for applying caps reciprocable in an opening in said plate and having a flat pad portion on the lower end thereof under said plate adapted to apply the caps, aslide reciprocable beneath the plate toward and away from said pad and arranged to deliver caps beneath the latter one by one from a suitable cap container, a ring frame fitting about and over said pad beneath the plate and having a lateral opening through which a cap is arranged to be forced by the slide, the cap after delivery into said ring being held frictionally, said ring having a plurality of guide rods projecting upwardly therefrom through openings in said plate, a crosshead on the plunger above the plate having said rods slidably received in openings therein, spring means acting between the crosshead and the rods for normally urging the ring frame yieldingly downwardly relative to the pad on the plunger, and means for reciprocating the plunger in timed relation with the reciprocation of the slide.

3. A device as set forth in claim 2 wherein the means for reciprocating the plunger comprises a coiled compression spring on top of said plate fitting about the plunger between the plate and the cross-head for normally urging the plunger to retracted position, said device including another member resting on to 3 of the plate and normally urged downwardly against the latter under the acting of said spring, said member having a projection reaching downwardly therefrom through an opening in said plate to a point adjacent the lateral opening in the ring frame, said projection being thereby arranged to yield to permit entering a cap through said lateral opening and thereafter serving to retain the same against withdrawal.

4. A machine of the character described comprising a base having a center post rising therefrom, a flat rotary carrier plate mounted on the base to turn relative to the post, said plate having a series of circumferentially arranged openings for the reception of cups or other containers to be capped, a cross-shaft supported from the base over the carrier, said shaft being arranged to be turned by means of a hand crank at the outer end thereof, a ratchet turning on the post secured to the carrier, and a tooth on the inner end of said cross-shaft arranged to engage the ratchet whereby to advance the carrier step by step in the turning of the cross-shaft, a spring pressed latch for locking said carrier in position at each step by step advance thereof, a cap container, a re ciprocating slide for feeding caps from said container, means operating with the cap feeding slide for releasing said latch, the carrier advancing ratchet being operated in a predetermined timed relation with respect to the cap feeding slide whereby to advance the carrier upon the release of said latch, means operated in the turning of said crossshaft for reciprocating the slide, and a cap applying plunger operated in the turning of said shaft in timed relation with the operation of said slide.

5. A machine as set forth in claim 4 wherein the cups or other containers are supported in the carrier plate by the rims thereof en gaging the carrier plate about the openings in the latter, and wherein said base has an arcuate passageway provided therein concentric with the post beneath the openings in said carrier plate to accommodate the cups in the movement thereof with the carrier, the said passageway having the bottom thereof inclined upwardly in a spiral from the receiving point to the discharge point whereby, after the cups have been capped, the bottoms thereof are arranged by reason of engagement with the bottom of the passageway during the step by step advances of the carrier plate to ride up the spiral so that the cups are raised out of their openings in the carrier plate for discharge from the machine.

6. A machine as set forth in claim 4 wherein the cups or other containers are supported in the carrier plate by the rims thereof engaging the carrier plate about the openings in the latter, and wherein said base has an arcuate passageway provided therein concentric with the post beneath the openings in said carrier plate to accommodate the cups in the movement thereof with the carrier, the said passageway having the bottom thereof inclined upwardly in a spiral from the receiving point to the discharge point, whereby, after the cups have been capped, the bottoms thereof are arranged by reason of engagement with the bottom of the passageway during the step by step advances of the carrier plate to ride up the spiral so that the cups are raised out of their openings in the carrier plate for discharge from the machine, and a discharge chute mounted over the carrier plate with the receiving end thereof adjacent the end of the spiral whereby to conduct the cups along a predetermined path away from the machine.

7. A machine of the character described comprising a base having a center post rising therefrom, a flat rotary carrier plate mounted on the base to turn relative to the post, said plate having a series of circumferentially arranged openings for the reception of cups or other containers to be capped, a cross-shaft supported from the base over the carrier, said shaft being arranged to be turned by means of a hand crank at the outer end thereof, a ratchet turning on the post secured to the carrier, and a tooth on the inner end of said crossshaft arranged to engage the ratchet whereby to advance the carrier step by step in the turning of the cross-shaft, means for locking the carrier in position at each step by step advance thereof, a cap container, a reciprocating slide for feeding caps from said container, means operated in the turning of said shaft to reciprocate the slide in a predetermined timed relation with the advancement of the carrier by said ratchet, means whereby the locking means is unlocked in the turning of said shaft in a predetermined timed relation with the operation of said ratchet, and a cap applying plunger operated in the turning of said shaft in timed relation with the operation of said slide.

8. A machine as set forth in claim 7 wherein the cups or other containers are supported in the carrier plate by the rims thereof engaging the carrier plate about the openings in the latter, and wherein said base has an arcuate passageway provided therein concentric with the post beneath the openings in said carrier plate to accommodate the cups in the movement thereof with the carrier, the said passageway having the bottom thereof inclined upwardly in a spiral from the receiving point to the discharge point whereby, after the cups have been capped, the bottoms thereof are arranged by reason of engagement with the bottom of the passageway during the step by step advances of the carrier plate to ride up the spiral so that the cups are raised out of their openings in the carrier plate for discharge from the machine.

9. A machine of' the character described comprising a base having a center post rising therefrom, a fiat rotary carrier plate mounted on the base to turn relative to the post, said plate having a series of circumferentially arranged openings for the re ception of cups or other containers to be capped, the cups or other containers being supported in the carrier plate by the rims thereof engaging the carrier plate about the openings in the latter, a cross-shaft supported from the base over the carrier, said shaft being arranged to be turned by means of a hand crank at the outer end thereof, a ratchet turning on the post secured to the carrier, and a tooth on the inner end of said cross-shaft arranged to engage the ratchet whereby to advance the carrier step by step in the turning of the cross-shaft, said base having an arcuate passageway provided therein concentric with the post beneath the openings in said carrier plate to accommodate the cups in the movement thereof with the carrier, the said passage way having the bottom thereof inclined upwardly in a spiral from the receiving point to the discharge point, whereby the bottoms thereof are arranged by reason of engagement with the bottom of the passageway in the advance of the carrier plate to ride up the spiral so that the cups are raised out of their openings in the carrier plate for discharge from the machine, and means operated inthe turning of the shaft for applying caps to cups carried on said plate.

10. Ainachine as set forth in claim 9 including a discharge chute mounted over the carrier plate with the receiving end thereof adjacent the end of the spiral whereby .to conduct the cups along a predetermined path away from the'machine.

11. A machine of the character described comprising a base having a center post rising therefrom, a flat rotary carrier plate mounted on the base to turn relative to the post, said plate having a series o-f'circumferentially arranged openings for the reception of cups or other containers to be capped, a cross-shaft supported from the base over the carrier, said shaft being ar ranged to be turned by means of a hand crank at the outer end thereof, a ratchet turning on the post secured to the carrier,

and a tooth on the inner end of said crossshaft arranged to engage the ratchet where,

by to advancethe carrier step by step in the turning of the cross-shaft, a cap container, a reciprocating slide for feeding caps from said container, the carrier advancing ratchet being operated in a predetermined timed relation with respect to the cap feeding slide, means operated in the turning of' said cross-shaft for reciprocating thefslide,

and a cap applying plunger operated in the turning of'said shaft in timed relation with the operation of said slide.

' 12. In a mechanism of the character described, the combination with a support for a cup .or other container to be capped, of

a cap mechanism carried on a support over the cup support comprising a capping plunger reciprocably mounted in said support in alignment with the cup to be capped, means for operating said plunger to and from the cup, a cap holding frame adapted for holding a cap about the edges thereof, said frame having guide rods extending therefrom, a cro-sshead on the capping plunger having said guide rods passing therethrough, spring means acting between the crosshead and the guide rods for normally holding the frame advanced relative to the capping plunger, the means for operating the cap applying plunger including a spring acting between r the mechanism support and the crosshead for normally moving the plunger and with it the cap holding frame to a retracted inoperative position, and a yielding plate on said mechanism support normally urged against the support under the action of said spring, said plate having a tooth thereon operating through said mechanism support for retaining the cap in the cap holding frame by engagement at one side of the cap.

13. In a mechanism of the character described, the combination with a support for a cup or other container to be capped, of a cap mechanism carried on a support over the cup support comprising a capping plunger reciprocably mounted in said support in alignment with the cup to be capped, means for operating said plunger to and from the cup, a cap holding frame adapted for holding a cap about the edges thereof, said frame having guide rods extending therefrom, a crosshead on the capping plunger having said guide rods passing therethrough, spring means acting between the crosshead and the guide rods for normally holding the frame advancedrelative tothe capping plunger, said cap holding frame being provided with a lateral opening for the entering of a cap therein byedgewise movement from that sideof said frame, the opening being just too narrow to take the full diameter of the cap so that the latter isv slightly bowed in passing therethrough'but thereafter, upon straightening, is gripped in said frame frictionally about the edges thereof especially at diametrically opposed points, and a cap retainingtooth yieldably mounted on said mechanism support for operation-in the lateral opening of the cap holding frame to engage thesideof the cap between the aforesaid points to retain the same in the frame against withdrawal, said tooth being arranged to yield to permit entering the cap in said frame.

I In witness of the foregoing I afiix my signature.

FRED L. BORCHERT. 

